Switch mechanism



Jan. 27, 1942. A. FLAD ETAL 1 2,271,420

SWITCH MECHANISM Filed Sept. 15, 193.8

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I

FIG. 2

\ INVENTORSI HARTURm FLAD BY ERN T SCHIMANN ATTORNEY.

Jan. 27, 1942. A, FL D A 2,271,420

SWITCH MECHANISM Filed Sept. 15, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. ARTUE? FLAD BY ERNST scmmmg ATTORNEY.

Patented Jan. 27, 1942 SWITCH MECHANISM Artur Fla'd, Berlin, and Ernst Schimann, Berlin- Spandau,

Germany,

assignors to Fides Gesellschaft fiir die Verwaltung und Verwertung von gewerblichen Schutzrechten m. b.

H., Berlin, Germany Application September 15, 1938, Serial No. 230,010 In Germany September 23, 1937 Claims.

The invention relates to selectors having one or more setting movements during which the contact arms are held away from the bank contacts.

In known arrangements for this purpose the contact arm support is displaced by a special magnet or by means of a driving magnet and this support is fixed in its operated position mechanically or electrically until the selector has stopped over the wiper. According to the invention it is proposed for this purpose to associate a jacking device with the contact arm which under the influence of a magnet allows the contact spring to touch the bank contact or prevents it from doing so. This construction makes possible the use of a pair of contact springs for the contact arm thus contact pressure is exerted on the bank contact from both sides, a thing which with previously known arrangements was not possible since for the lifting up and lifting away of the contact arm only a single contact spring can be influenced.

The invention may be used for selectors with several setting movements of the contact arm as well a for those which only carry out a single setting movement in one direction preferably using the driving magnet which is already there.

In two embodiments the invention is described in detail and actually in the case of an up and around selector using the vertical magnet for controlling the jacking operation according to the embodiment of Figs. 1, 2 and 3 or by means of the rotary magnet in the construction to Fig. 4.

Fig. 1 is a front view of this selector all of those parts which are not essential for the effeci tive working of the invention being left out.

Fig. 2 shows the selector of Figure 1 in plan, the upper supporting plate of the selector being removed.

Fig. 3 shows the contact arms by themselves and the jacking device on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 4 shows another embodiment of the selector in plan.

In the parts of the selector shown in Figs. 1-3, I indicates the fixed axle of the selector on which in known manner the contact arm support 2 is situated and provided with teeth for the vertical and rotary movement.

Further, the jacking device for the speech contact arm 5 is so situated on this part that it can carry out a small rotary movement. This device consists of two strip 3 joined in the middle whose bent-over ends each carry a wedge-shaped insulating member. Normally both of these engage with the contact springs of the speech contact arms 5 without jacking up the springs, however.

The displacement of the selector takes place over the vertical magnet 6 and the rotary magnet 1 by mean of the impulse pawls 9 and I0 associated with their armatures 8 and 8 and the teeth on the contact arm support 2. An arm H controlling a jacking device is movable on the axle of the vertical magnet armature 8 and is held in its rest position under the influence of a spring l2. On the armature 8' there is a projection l3 which is held on the attraction of the armature against a projection 14 on the controlled arm II and the arm is thus brought to its operated position in which it is held by mean of a locking spring l5 so that the armature 8 is free 'for further movement when it is attracted. By the displacement of the control arm I I the locking device at its arm 3 reaches an effective position with respect to the contact arm 5 in which the wedge-shaped member 4 engages in the spring of the contact arm to such an extent that the latter is pried open. This result in the following manner.

The free end of the arm I l of the vertical magnet armature 8 is connected with an angle lever l6 which latter is connected with a rotatable bracket IT. The movement of the arm H is thus transferred to the bracket I 1 which as a result carries out a small rotary movement which suf fices so to displace a segment l8 resting against a roller I1 of the bracket which segment is firmly connected with the jacking device, that the two arms 3 of the jacking device are pressed at their wedge-shaped members 4 between the contact springs of the contact arm 5 so that these are opened.

When the vertical movement is finished the selector turns by means of the rotary magnet 'l and the impulse pawl I0 associated with this magnet. Since a lever arm l9 against the locking spring I5 is thus displaced from its effective position andhence removes the support for the control lever II this travels back into its initial position in which the jacking device is again in it ineffective setting. In order to bring the control arm into its operated position, again by mean of the vertical magnet 6 this magnet is energized over a shaft contact on the first rotary movement and is then held in the attracted position until the selector is stopped by the testing operation so that the jacking device is also held in its eifective position during the rotary movement of the selector.

The same operations repeat when the selector is released right up to the last rotary step. When this has taken place the vertical magnet is disconnected at the same time as the rotary magnet and all the components are set back to their unoperated positions.

In the embodiment shown in plan on an enlarged scale in Fig. lthe control of the jacking device by the rotary magnet of a selector is indicated.

1 indicates the rotary magnet which attracts the armature B which rotates about 20. The bent-over arm ill of this armature carries on this free end the impulse pawl In which displaces the cog 2 which is loose on the selector axle I and thus steps on the rigidly connected arm 5. At the contact arm support the jacking device 3 is further situated so as to rotate about 22 with its leading segment 23. Its displacement over the rotary magnet 1 takes place by means of a lever 25 which rotates about 24 and under the influence of a spring 28 lies with its roller 21 lightly pressing on the leading segment 23 of the locking device. On each attraction of the armature the impulse pawl l engages in the teeth 2 and thus turns the contact arm support by a single step. In this way the pin 28 of the arm of the armature resting on the lever 25 exerts pressure on the roller 2! which is now pressed against the leading segment 23 and thus pushes the jacking device 3 into the spring at its wedge-shaped end 4 to such an extent that this is opened on every stepping operation and only comes back into con tact with the bank contacts after the completion of a step since by the return motion owing to the locking device being carried round the pressure against the leading segment is again removed; the contact spring 5 therefore takes up its closed position. This inter-play repeats on each stepping motion until the selector motion is stopped in its testing operation. The contact springs 5- now remain in their closed position on the bank contact reached until the release of the selector whereupon the operations repeat in the same way.

The transferring of the movement of the armature 8 on to the jacking device 3 can also be done in a different manner than that represented in the embodiment. It can find use for selectors with more than one movement or for those with only rotary movement. The kind of jacking of the contact arm by means of the vertical magnet as shown in the drawings can also be used in a selector which merely carries out a rectilinear movement.

What is claimed is:

1. A switching mechanism provided with wipers adapted to engage both sides of successive contacts in an associated contact bank, stepping means, means for automatically operating said stepping means to drive said wipers past said successive contacts of said bank, means controlled by the operation of said stepping means for holding said wipers out of engagement with said successive contacts during said driving period, and means automatically effective responsive to the termination of the operation of said stepping means for permitting said wipers to simultaneously engage both sides of a bank contact opposite which the wipers are standing when the stepping means ceases its operation.

2. An automatic switching mechanism provided with a wiper having two arms each of which is adapted to engage opposite sides of any on contact in an associated contact bank, means for driving said wiper in a primary direction to a point opposite any row of contacts in said bank,

means for driving said wiper in a secondary direction to a point opposite any one of the contacts in the selected row, means for holding the arms of said wiper in spaced relation relative to each other during said secondary driving period to prevent each arm from engaging the contacts in the row, and means effective when said secondary driving period is terminated for rendering said last mentioned means ineffective to thereby permit the arms of said wiper to engage the opposite sides of the contact in the bank opposite which the wiper is standing.

3. An automatic mechanism having a vertically and rotatably movable shaft for controlling the movement of a set of wipers over associated bank contacts, a vertical and a rotary magnet for controlling the movement of said shaft, a device associated with said wipers and normally disengaged therefrom, said device controllable during the vertical and rotary movement of said shaft to make direct contact with said wipers to prevent them from engaging the associated bank contacts.

4. An automatic mechanism having a vertically and rotatably movable shaft for controlling the movement of a wiper over associated bank contacts, a vertical and a rotary magnet for controlling the movement of said wiper, a wiper control device associated with said wipeand rotatable with said wiper, said device controllable by operation of said vertical magnet to be brought into effective relation with said wiper to prevent engagement of associated bank contacts by the wiper during movement of the same.

5. In a switching mechanism, a plurality of contacts forming a wiper set, a first magnet for stepping said wiper set in a primary direction, latching means effective responsive to the initial movement in said primary direction for locking the contacts of said set in spaced relation relative to each other, a magnet for stepping said wiper set in a secondary direction, means effective responsive to movement in said secondary direction for unlocking said latching means and for maintaining said first magnet energized to hold the contacts of said wiper set in said spaced relation until movement in said secondary direction has been terminated.

6. In a switching mechanism, a plurality of normally closed contacts forming a wiper set, spacing means associated with said wiper set effective when actuated to open the normally closed contacts of said set, a first magnet for moving said wiper set in a primary direction and for actuating said spacing means, latching means effective responsive to the initial movement of said wiper set in said primary direction for locking said spacing means in actuated position, a magnet for moving said wiper set in a secondary direction, means effective responsive to movement in said secondary direction for unlocking said latching means and for energizing said first magnet to maintain said spacing means actuated until movement of said wiper set in said secondary direction is terminated.

7. In a switching mechanism, a pair of wiper contacts, a shaft for said contacts, a magnet, a wiper control device adapted when actuated to separate the contacts of said pair of contacts, means controlled responsive to the operation of said magnet for rotating said shaft and contacts and for simultaneously actuating said wiper con trol device during movement of said contacts.

8. An automatic switching mechanism in which the wipers are adapted to be moved in a vertical and a rotary direction and to engage two surfaces of associated bank contacts, means effective during the vertical and rotary movement of said wipers for controlling the wipers to prevent them from engaging bank contacts, said last mentioned means rendered ineffective responsive to the termination of said rotary movement for permitting the wipers to engage two surfaces of the bank contact opposite the wipers at th termination of said rotary movement.

9. In a selector mechanism for telephone systems wherein the wipers in the talking circuit are held out of engagement with associated bank contacts during selective movement of the wipers, a magnet, a spacing device associated with the talking wipers and controlled by said magnet to prevent the talking wipers from engaging the bank contacts during movement of the wipers, said magnet rendered ineffective to control said spacing device when said movement is terminated to thereby permit the talking wipers to engage two surfaces of the bank contact selected by the termination of the wiper movement.

10. In a selector switch, a line wiper, means for rotating said wiper over associated bank contacts, said wiper comprising two contactors for engaging said bank contacts, means efiective when operated for holding said contactors in spaced relation relative to each other out of engagement with said bank contacts during rotation, a magnet energized during rotation to render said last mentioned means effective, said magnet controlled responsive to the termination of rotation for rendering said contactor holding means inefiective to thereby permit said contactors to engage difierent surfaces of a bank contact selected by termination of rotation.

ARTUR FLAD. ERNST SCI-IIMANN. 

